374 LEPIDOPTERA. 



continued during the seven weeks of their life in the cater- 

 pillar form. The trees, in those orchards and gardens where 

 they have been suffered to breed for a succession of years, 

 become prematurely old, in consequence of the efforts they 

 are obliged to make to repair, at an unseasonable time, the 

 loss of their foliage, and are rendered unfruitful, and con- 

 sequently unprofitable. But this is not all ; these pernicious 

 insects spread in every direction, from the trees of the care- 

 less and indolent to those of their more careful and indus- 

 trious neighbors, whose labors are thereby greatly increased, 

 and have to be followed up year after year, without any 

 prospect of permanent relief. 



Many methods and receipts for the destruction of these 

 insects have been published and recommended, but have 

 failed to exterminate them, and indeed have done but little 

 to lessen their numbers, as, indeed, might be expected from 

 the tenor of the foregoing remarks. In order to be com- 

 pletely successful, they must be universally adopted. These 

 means comprehend both the destruction of the eggs and of 

 the caterpillars. The eggs are to be sought for in the win- 

 ter and the early part of spring, when there are no leaves 

 on the trees. They are easily discovered at this time, and 

 may be removed with the thumb-nail and forefinger. Nur- 

 series and the lower limbs of large trees may thus be entirely 

 cleared of the clusters of eggs during a few visits made at 

 the proper season. It is well known that the caterpillars 

 come out to feed twice during the daytime, namely, in the 

 forenoon and afternoon, and that they rarely leave their nests 

 before nine in the morning, and return to them again at 

 noon. During the early part of the season, while the nests 

 are small, and the caterpillars young and tender, and at 

 those hours when the insects are gathered together within 

 their common habitation, they may be effectually destroyed 

 by crushing them by hand in the nests. A brush, somewhat 

 like a bottle-brush, fixed to a long handle, as recommended 

 by the late Colonel Pickering, or, for the want thereof, a 



